Senior partners with district and Saratoga Library to host second annual AAPI Multimedia Art Exhibition

Photo by Kevin Yang

After the first exhibition in 2023, senior Ryan Lin poses with LGSUHSD and Saratoga Library staff. 

Senior Ryan Lin is working with the Saratoga Library and the school district as he coordinates an exhibition of Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) multimedia art exhibition on display from April through May. 

The event, located at the Saratoga Library, features various art works by district students that explore AAPI identity and culture.

Lin, who is president of the school’s Chinese Club and National Chinese Honor Society Saratoga Chapter —  an organization that promotes students that study Chinese while also developing citizenship and leadership skills  —  has recruited Chinese Club members to assist with setting up the event. In order to promote the exhibition, club members have visited numerous art teachers’ rooms to put up posters and encourage art submissions.

The Chinese Club also helped collect and organize student submissions until March 15. In total, the team received a total of 177 submissions consisting of art, photography and origami pieces. Lin is communicating with the Saratoga Library on how to better organize the event; he must determine the best location in the library and figure out how to best display the art pieces. 

This is the second AAPI art exhibition hosted at the Saratoga Library, with the first being held in the spring of last year. Lin said the previous year’s event, which he also ran, was an overall positive experience, praising the student talent and over 40 submissions. Like last year, this year’s submissions are not just limited to traditional artworks — written works, like poetry and prose, digital art pieces and photography are also encouraged.

Photo by Isabelle Wang 

Caption: One of the submissions, titled: “Sky Lantern” by Isabelle Wang

Photo by Isabelle Wang

Caption: Another submission, titled: “Kenting Beach” by Isabelle Wang

“There was this one art submission [last year] where someone made a poster and had a bunch of Asian people holding the sides, showing how they have a diversity of different career goals and dreams,” Lin said. “I think that the poster perfectly embodied the diversity within the AAPI community.”

Most importantly, Lin emphasizes the importance of the event in raising awareness among the community by allowing for a diversity of perspectives to be displayed in a public space. As such, Lin encourages anyone with an interest in artwork or the AAPI community to attend the event.

“The main point of this event is to create a more inclusive community,” he said. “By allowing people to express their views through art, other people see that and they’ll be able to expose themselves to different cultures and identities.”